Sterilization Monitoring
Sterilization procedures should be monitored through a combination of mechanical, chemical, and biological techniques designed to evaluate the sterilizing conditions and the procedure’s effectiveness. There are three methods to monitor the sterilization procedures – mechanical indicators, chemical indicators and biological indicators.
Mechanical indicators include assessing various parameters that contribute to the sterilisation process such as time, temperature and pressure. Most of these indicators could be found on the displays or other output devices such as printers.
Chemical indicators, internal and external, use sensitive chemicals to assess physical conditions such as temperature during the sterilization process. It is critical to note that chemical indicators such as heat sensitive tape or one that is found on the sterilisation pouches are only class 1 indicators or process indicators used differentiate between the processed and unprocessed batches. Class 2 indicators such as Bowie-Dick tests need to be used daily at the first test cycle.
Internal indicators that needs to be used on every pouch or container monitors all three parameters required to ensure sterilisation effectiveness namely time, temperature and quality of steam. We recommend the use of Class 6 indicators as it is the only type which is capable of monitoring a full sterilisation cycle and to provide a sterility assurance level (SAL) of 10-18 .
The third type of indicators used to validate Sterilisation procedures are Biological Indicators. They typically contain vials of Geobacillus or Bacillus species – they are put along with certain types of Autoclave loads (e.g. implants) and are subsequently incubated to ensure potential pathogens have been killed to provide assurance on sterility. According to Oman Ministry of Health guidelines, each autoclave must be tested with a biological indicator at least once a week.
Our partnerships in Sterilization Monitoring includes Sterlab, Francethat manufacturers chemical indicators (Steripoint) and Terragene, Argentina, that offers the full range of biological indicators and incubators including the ultra-rapid version that provide results within just 20 minutes.
Sterilization Monitoring
Sterilization procedures should be monitored through a combination of mechanical, chemical, and biological techniques designed to evaluate the sterilizing conditions and the procedure’s effectiveness. There are three methods to monitor the sterilization procedures – mechanical indicators, chemical indicators and biological indicators.
Mechanical indicators include assessing various parameters that contribute to the sterilisation process such as time, temperature and pressure. Most of these indicators could be found on the displays or other output devices such as printers.
Chemical indicators, internal and external, use sensitive chemicals to assess physical conditions such as temperature during the sterilization process. It is critical to note that chemical indicators such as heat sensitive tape or one that is found on the sterilisation pouches are only class 1 indicators or process indicators used differentiate between the processed and unprocessed batches. Class 2 indicators such as Bowie-Dick tests need to be used daily at the first test cycle.
Internal indicators that needs to be used on every pouch or container monitors all three parameters required to ensure sterilisation effectiveness namely time, temperature and quality of steam. We recommend the use of Class 6 indicators as it is the only type which is capable of monitoring a full sterilisation cycle and to provide a sterility assurance level (SAL) of 10-18 .
The third type of indicators used to validate Sterilisation procedures are Biological Indicators. They typically contain vials of Geobacillus or Bacillus species – they are put along with certain types of Autoclave loads (e.g. implants) and are subsequently incubated to ensure potential pathogens have been killed to provide assurance on sterility. According to Oman Ministry of Health guidelines, each autoclave must be tested with a biological indicator at least once a week.
Our partnerships in Sterilization Monitoring includes Sterlab, Francethat manufacturers chemical indicators (Steripoint) and Terragene, Argentina, that offers the full range of biological indicators and incubators including the ultra-rapid version that provide results within just 20 minutes.
